Because while Bill Shakespeare insisted that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, director Roland Emmerich challenges that with yon beautifully appointed -- and very fictionalized -- historical drama "Anonymous."

In it, Emmerich muses on the age-old question of who really penned the works of William Shakespeare. But it's not only the Bard's name that's open to redefinition in this well-dressed, if historically shaky, movie. Emmerich's is, too.

That's because one of the biggest surprises in his sometimes-twisting, sometimes-sordid -- and occasionally clumsily plotted -- tale of Elizabethan Era political intrigue is that Emmerich's name is attached to such a literate, and literary, film.

He is, after all, Hollywood's reigning master of disaster, the visual-effects guru who flooded New York City in "The Day After Tomorrow," pitted man against mastodon in "10,000 B.C." and blew up the whole darn planet in "2012." After that apocalyptic last entry on his resume, more than a few people wondered aloud how he would top himself.

"Anonymous" provides the answer: He would flip the script and change genres entirely.

Perhaps even more surprising: He proves to be a reasonably adept hand at this whole "hark" and "forsooth" thing. That's right: I come to praise Emmerich, not to bury him.

His "Anonymous" is a film that soars largely on its technical elements. The costumes (Lisy Christl) and production design (Sebastian T. Krawinkel) are nothing short of dazzling. As for Emmerich's effects-heavy background, it comes in surprisingly handy, too, as he uses it to create sweeping skylines and lush Elizabethan vistas that add to the film's textural dimensions.

Still, there's enough substance to make things work. He comes up with a film that is several shades darker than 1998's Oscar-winnning "Shakespeare in Love," but one that's in the same ballpark.

In his version of history, the Bard is a drunken, womanizing, barely literate actor (played wonderfully by Rafe Spall). The real beautiful mind, Emmerich would have us believe -- in keeping with one popular anti-Stradfordian theory -- was that of Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford.

For reasons political and personal, the good Earl (Rhys Ifans) pays Shakespeare to put his name on "Hamlet" and "Romeo and Juliet" and so many others. What follows is a densely packed and twisting tale that includes elements of royal succession, political treachery and an homage to the power of the written word. (And a chance to see Vanessa Redgrave in full-monarch splendor.)

It's also a sometimes confusing tale, as Emmerich's narrative isn't nearly as structurally sound as his computer-enhanced version of the Globe Theater. "Anonymous" starts admirably quickly, but Emmerich repeatedly forgets to look over his shoulder to see if his audience is keeping track of which stringy-haired Calvin Klein model is which. Any time a director includes the dreaded flashback within a flashback within a flashback -- as he does early here -- you can be sure there's (bubble, bubble toil and) trouble ahead.

Things eventually crystallize in a third-act payoff that will bring shudders and raised eyebrows -- and the other big surprise of "Anonymous."

Exeunt historical accuracy? Yes. But enter a new, and welcome, side of Roland Emmerich.

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ANONYMOUS3 stars, out of 4

Snapshot: A historical -- and very fictionalized -- drama, exploring the question of who really wrote the works of William Shakespeare.